For her 100th birthday, this former WWII pilot just wanted to fly again

Jeri Truesdell took a ride in a vintage plane, years after serving as a World War II pilot.

For her 100th birthday, World War II veteran and pilot Jeri Truesdell wanted one thing–to fly again.

“I just wanted to go up and see what it looked like, where I’d moved to, from the air,” she said. “I love the feeling of being up in the clouds.”

In 1930s Chicago, Truesdell scraped together enough extra money to pay for four years of flying lessons, a novel hobby for women in the pre-war years.

Always adventurous, Truesdell, was a member of the Chicago Girls Flying Club and volunteered to parachute out of a plane as part of a 1939 air show, even before she reached the required number of hours to fly solo.

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“Well, I sprained my ankle on the landing, but it wasn’t all that bad,” she recalled. “It was exciting, that’s for sure.”

At the outbreak of World War II, Truesdell volunteered to become a Civil Air Patrol Pilot, then moved to Atlanta in 1942 to train female pilots in the Navy’s Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service, or WAVES division.

She continued to fly, but recalls her last day at the controls almost two decades ago, when she flew a round trip from Van Nuys Airport in Los Angeles to California’s Central Valley in a rented private plane.

On Friday morning, Truesdell — long ago nicknamed “Eagle Pants” by friends for her “fly by the seat of your pants” outlook — returned to the skies, a passenger in a World War II-era AT-6. Truesdell turns 100 on Sunday, and returning to the skies was a birthday dream come true.

“This is one of the most exciting days of my life,” Truesdell said before climbing into the cockpit. “I’ve had a lot of exciting days in my life, but this is up there.”

The plane Truesdell rode in is one of seven based at the Van Nuys Airport and maintained by Condor Squadron, a nonprofit organization founded in 1966 dedicated to honoring veterans with the public display of the AT-6s. Most of its founding members were former World War II pilots. Many bought and restored the planes and began regularly appearing at veterans memorials, local parades, major league ball games and air shows.

“She was great. She just kind of looked around throughout the flight, keeping quiet, but with a big smile on her face,” said Will Tinley, the pilot who took Truesdell up into the sunny afternoon sky.

During the 30-minute trip over southern California, Tinley flew Truesdell over the San Fernando Valley, past her Winnetka home and above the Newhall Pass.

Truesdell moved west from Chicago and eventually took a job with Lockheed Martin training pilots. Truesdell retired decades ago, although she says the exact date is a little fuzzy.

“You know, when there’s so much in the rear-view, it’s hard to remember things exactly,” she said. Spry and always quick with a joke, friends say she continues to surprise them.

A few years ago, she moved into a detached home at the rear of a property owned by friends from church.

“She’s just great. She still likes to be so independent and likes to do things on her own,” said Gabriel Reoyo, one of those friends, who accompanied Truesdell to the airfield Friday. “This is just wonderful for her.”

Truesdell, face flushed red from the ride and the attention of the 20 people gathered around to watch, started pondering what she was going to do for her 101st birthday.

“How do you top this?” she asked. “I’ll tell you what, though, not sure it’ll be this much excitement. This is just so much attention. I wouldn’t want to be a celebrity. I’m no fuss.”